Ukraine war in the live ticker: +++ 09:22 F-16 jets could be equipped with US medium-range missiles +++

A new US military package for Ukraine could also include medium-range missiles for F-16 fighter jets. According to the US newspaper Politico, these are missiles from the Joint Standoff Weapon system used by the US Army. According to the manufacturer, the weapon system includes air-to-ground missiles with a range of more than 100 kilometers. This would enable the Ukrainian armed forces to reach targets from a safer distance than before, writes Politico. Washington is considering providing the missiles as part of a military package worth 375 million US dollars. The package is still being finalized, it is said, citing two US officials. It is expected to be announced on Monday. It is also expected to include artillery ammunition, rockets and anti-aircraft missiles.

+++ 08:47 Russia: More than 100 drones shot down +++
According to the Defense Ministry, Russia's air defenses have shot down more than 100 drones in various regions of the country. According to the Defense Ministry, the air defenses shot down 53 drones in the Bryansk region alone. In the Krasnodar region, 18 drones were intercepted, and a total of 101 in the various regions. In its defense against Moscow's war of aggression, which has been going on for more than two and a half years, Ukraine has repeatedly attacked targets in Russia, including ammunition depots and fuel depots, in order to stop military supplies.

+++ 07:59 Kyiv reports success in recruitment +++
The Ministry of Defense in Kiev is reporting that recruitment numbers are allegedly increasing. “On average, 6,500 volunteers are recruited in the country every month,” the ministry's representative, Oleksiy Bezhevez, was quoted as saying after the opening of a recruitment center in Cherkassy in central Ukraine. From cooks to drone pilots, more than 10,000 vacancies are currently advertised in the army, national guard and border guard. The ministry says it has already set up 38 such recruitment centers across the country. The ministry does not provide any information on the general number of conscriptions. At the same time, images of violent recruitment continue to circulate daily on social media, in which men are beaten and kicked by uniformed officers and dragged into minibuses. Passers-by who happen to be there often express their solidarity with the victims.

+++ 07:23 Krasnodar reports explosion after drone attacks +++
According to Russian sources, there has been an explosion in the Russian region of Krasnodar, which lies east of the Russian-occupied Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea. Governor Veniamin Kondratyev reported via Telegram that Ukrainian drone attacks had taken place in the Tikhoretsk district. Two drones had been repelled, he wrote. Falling debris had started a fire, “which spread to explosive objects. A detonation occurred.” Russian Telegram channels such as Astra reported that an ammunition depot had been hit. Several videos are said to show the explosion. No injuries have been reported so far. According to the governor, residents of a village near the scene of the fire were housed in emergency shelters in the city of Tikhoretsk. Ukrainian security circles had already announced on Wednesday that an ammunition depot in the western Russian region of Tver had been destroyed by a drone attack.

+++ 06:43 Governor: Rocket hits Kryvyi Rih, young boy and elderly woman killed +++
Russia flew a missile attack on Kryvyi Rih in the center of the attacked country. At least three people were killed and three others injured, writes the governor of the Dnipropetrovsk region, Serhiy Lysak, on Telegram. The victims are a 12-year-old boy and two women aged 75 and 79. According to the city's military administration, the missile hit a residential area of ​​the city in the middle of the night. During the night, several regions of Ukraine again reported air raid warnings due to Russian attacks. Ukrainian air defense reports 25 attacks in total. 5 missiles and 11 drones were intercepted, it says.

+++ 06:14 Speculation about dismissals in the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense +++
Further personnel changes are underway in the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense. According to consistent media reports, two deputies of the head of military intelligence, Kyrylo Budanov, were dismissed by Defense Minister Umyerov. The dismissal took place last week without consulting Budyerov. The initiator of the personnel change is said to be Andriy Yermak, head of the presidential office, who wants to weaken the head of military intelligence, according to the reports. According to the news portal “Ukrainska Pravda”, Umyerov is also said to have dismissed or already fired around 20 general and high-ranking employees. Neither Umyerov nor Budyerov commented on the reports.

+++ 05:44 Selenskyj relies on electricity imports from the EU +++
Ukraine is preparing to fend off further Russian air strikes on energy production. In his video message, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported on an agreement with Brussels on expanding electricity imports from the EU. “This is what will definitely support our country and our people in difficult situations,” said the head of state, without giving any further details. According to Ukrainian information, 1.7 gigawatts can currently be imported from the EU and its southwestern neighbor Moldova. The government had previously stated an increase to over 2.2 gigawatts as a goal.

+++ 04:47 Survey: Every second Russian in favor of withdrawal from Ukraine +++
Nearly 50 percent of the Russian population supports a troop withdrawal from Ukraine and peace talks even if the Kremlin's military goals are not achieved, according to a joint poll by the independent polling firms ExtremeScan and Chronicles, reported by the Kyiv Independent. The figures represent a notable departure from the overwhelming support for the war shown by previous polls. A February poll by the independent Russian polling firm Levada found that 77 percent of Russians supported a full-scale war in Ukraine.

+++ 03:45 Fine dust: Kyiv tops list of most polluted cities +++
Kyiv tops a list of the most polluted cities in the world. Although the air situation in Kyiv has improved overall, the air reaches critical levels as early as 1 a.m. The city recorded a five-fold increase in the concentration of suspended dust particles, which are combustion products. This is due to the burning of peat bogs and forests in the Chernihiv, Sumy and Kyiv regions, the state administration of the Ukrainian capital reports. Doctors recommend that citizens do not stay outdoors, close the windows, clean the air with special devices and drink plenty of water.

+++ 02:37 Telegram rejects Kyiv's accusation: No data passed on +++
After the Telegram messaging service was banned for state employees in Ukraine, the company claims that it has never shared personal data or message content. “Telegram has never shared messaging data with any country, including Russia. Deleted messages are deleted forever and cannot be technically recovered,” Telegram said in a statement. Every case of “leaked messages” has been proven to be the result of a compromised device, such as through confiscation or malware. According to the Telemetrio database, around 33,000 Telegram channels are active in Ukraine. The country had previously banned the use of the messaging app on official devices by state employees, military personnel and key employees for fear of Russian espionage.

+++ 01:21 Putin opponent Kara-Murza: Now prepare democracy in Russia +++
The West and the Russian opposition in exile should now begin laying the foundations for a democratic transition in Russia, says Russian opposition politician Vladimir Kara-Murza in anticipation of an end to the rule of Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin. Seven weeks after his release from a Siberian penal colony in a historic East-West exchange, Kara-Murza did not confirm what he thought Putin's departure would look like. He stressed, however, that Russia could not waste the limited time for reforms, as it did after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.

+++ 00:19 Three attacks on Kharkiv: At least 15 injured +++
The mayor of the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, Igor Terekhov, reports three attacks on the city by Russian forces. According to the mayor, 15 people were injured, including three children. Eight people had to be taken to hospital. According to Kharkiv police, suspected by public broadcaster, the attacks hit three different parts of the city. One hit, caused by a guided bomb, hit an area in front of a hospital. A second hit an area with private houses and the third hit an open area. Further southeast in the Kharkiv region, in the village of Kivsharivka, two people were killed and two injured in a Russian attack, regional police said.

+++ 23:20 Insider: USA puts together 375 million dollar weapons package for Kiev +++
The US will provide Ukraine with an additional package of military aid worth $375 million, Reuters reports, citing two unnamed US government officials. The announcement of the package is expected sometime next week, they say. If confirmed, this would be the largest tranche of military aid the US has provided to Ukraine since May this year, when a package worth $275 million was delivered. The package will include patrol boats, ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), artillery shells, spare parts and other military equipment, according to the insiders.

+++ 22:19 Norway increases aid to Ukraine after criticism +++
Norway's civil and military assistance program for Ukraine, known as the Nansen program, will be extended until 2030 and increased by another 5 billion krone ($475 million) this year, the Norwegian government announced. The Nansen program is now worth a total of 135 billion krone ($12.8 billion). The program was originally planned to spend 75 billion krone ($7 billion) from 2023 to 2028. Norwegian news agency Nettavisen reported that the decision to extend the Nansen program was made after the government “faced massive criticism because Norway's support for Ukraine lagged behind other countries.” “Almost all Norwegian opposition parties are calling for a significant increase in support for Ukraine,” Nettavisen said. “This unwavering commitment will help Ukraine protect life, defend freedom and strengthen our resilience,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said after the decision.

+++ 21:22 Scholz stresses: No Taurus cruise missiles for Ukraine +++
Chancellor Olaf Scholz has once again rejected the delivery of Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine. “Although I have urged many people not to deliver cruise missiles that can reach Moscow,” the SPD politician told around 200 guests at a public meeting in Niedergörsdorf in Brandenburg. “I can and will guarantee here: I will stick to this position.” At the same time, Scholz stressed the need to examine options for peace in the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine. “Now is the time to explore what options are available.” The Chancellor criticized the position of the Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW) and AfD coalition. He contradicted them when they said that peace negotiations were the alternative to supporting Ukraine. “That is naive.”

All previous developments canYou can read more here.